Reading Horacio de la Costa, SJ: Views from the 21st Century

by Soledad S. Reyes (Editor)

Rediscover the legacies of Horacio de la Costa (1916- 1977), historian and Jesuit, in these essays by

Catalino G. Arevalo, SJ
Coeli Barry
Edilberto C. de Jesus
Jose Mario B. Francisco, SJ
Reynaldo C. Ileto
René B. Javellana, SJ
John B. Labella
Benito J. Legarda Jr.
Vicente L. Rafael
Paulynn Paredes Sicam
Fernando N. Zialcita
"Horacio de la Costa is remembered today as a Makati street name or the name of the Humanities building on the Ateneo de Manila University campus. He has been fossilized in bronze, as a figure in a priest's cassock, standing with his palms over his crotch like a football goalkeeper. The essays in this book introduce de la Costa—the man, the historian, the humanist—to a new generation that should be intrigued enough by this book to go beyond it to sample and savor de la Costa's writings."

-Ambeth Ocampo, Department of History, Ateneo de Manila University

275 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2017

About the author

Dr. Reyes graduated with an AB English Literature degree from Maryknoll College in 1966 and received her MA in Literature from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1971. She obtained her PhD in Philippine Studies from the University of the Philippines in 1979, and her MA in Sociology of Literature from Essex University, England in 1981. Reyes joined the Interdisciplinary Studies faculty of Ateneo as instructor in 1971 and never left since. In 1986, she earned full professor status at the university.

Students in the Philippines and abroad who are interested in learning more about Philippine culture and literature have benefited from Dr. Reyes’ expertise. In 1997, she was an exchange professor handling modules on Philippine literature and popular culture at Peking University. In 1992, she was among the delegates of the Ateneo to the Peking University-Ateneo de Manila University Exchange Program. In 1987, she engaged students of Xiamen University in China on a two-month series of lectures on Philippine literature, culture and history as part of the exchange program between the two universities.

Dr. Reyes has served the Ateneo in various capacities including editor of the "Loyola Schools Review" (Humanities) from 2001 up to the present. She is currently an active member of PEN International as well as the Writers’ Union of the Philippines (Unyon ng mga Manunulat ng Pilipinas – UMPIL). From 1987-1995, she served as board member of UMPIL.

Dr. Reyes is also a multi-awarded writer and author of books, the most recent of which are From Darna to Zsazsa Zaturnnah: Desire and Fantasy and Other Way (2009) and A Dark Tinge to the World: Selected Essays 1987-2005.

Reviews

[Earl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was able to actually attend some of the lectures that are part of the whole series. I always went home consoled that even in our time, we still reflect on, ruminate even, the words of the great Horacio de la Costa, S.J.

This book has granted me an opportunity to listen and think about how important being a Christian human person, called to the priesthood, is. The importance of thinking well, acting well, and being actually well are things that he has really emphasized; moreover, it also helps that we see them with 21st century lens, through the help of the lecturers featured in this book.